Walder grabs win for Wasps

Dave Walder's late drop-goal for Wasps ended Sale's unbeaten home record and earned the Londoners their first away win of the Aviva Premiership season.

Wasps trailed 24-19 at a rain-drenched Edgeley Park heading into the final quarter but fly-half Walder, who ended with 20 points, struck his fifth penalty before slotting the crucial kick from in front of the posts with just two minutes remaining.

Walder's opposite number Charlie Hodgson marked his first start of the season with all his side's points in a flawless kicking display.

The scores had been level at 12-12 at half-time after both sides struggled to cope in the conditions, with Hodgson and Walder sharing eight penalties.

Four further penalties from Hodgson had looked set to hand Sale the win, despite Wasps scoring the game's only try through Dan Ward-Smith, before Walder's late winner.

A scrappy opening saw Hodgson and Walder convert two penalties apiece, with Hodgson's second coming from just inside the halfway line.

A Sale line-out error gifted Wasps the first genuine attacking opportunity in the 16th minute, but the Sharks defence held firm against a series of close-range drives and the pressure was relieved as hooker Joe Ward was penalised for a double movement as he went for the line.

The Sharks made the most of that let off by tracking full-back Richard Haughton down yards from his own line to force a penalty, which Hodgson knocked over with ease.

Walder then levelled the scores from wide out on the left in the 28th minute for Sale hands in a ruck.

But Hodgson's fourth three-pointer re-established Sale's lead from the Sharks' next attack.

Error-strewn

The game continued to be an error-strewn affair as Walder levelled matters once again seconds before the break.

The Sharks began the second half sloppily, losing possession on three straight line-out throws, but when they did finally secure set-piece possession they earned yet another penalty, and Hodgson was on target again to make it 15-12 after 47 minutes, before adding a fine long-range kick to edge Sale six points ahead.

Walder could not match Hodgson's accuracy with a long-range effort of his own but Wasps hit back by scoring the game's only try on 56 minutes.

Sharks full-back Paul Williams deliberately flicked a David Lemi kick-ahead out of play to concede another penalty, and when Wasps took a scrum Ward-Smith scored from close range, Walder converting to put the visitors in front.

But the lead proved short-lived as as Wasps conceded a penalty from the restart, Hodgson immediately putting Sale back in front before Lemi spilt a high-ball to allow the stand-off to knock over penalty number eight.

Wasps' task became more difficult as replacement hooker Rob Webber was sent to the sin-bin for some back-chat towards referee David Rose, but Walder set up a tense finale with his fifth three-pointer with 10 minutes remaining.

And the visitors set up the winning score with a composed raid into the Sale 22, setting the platform for Walder to calmly knock over the drop-goal for a victory which sees Wasps leapfrog Sale and climb to seventh in the table.